People to Watch in 2012

fernando osuna

EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR LOPEZ NEGRETE COMMUNICATIONS

Fernando Osuna is the Executive Creative Director at Lopez Negrete Communications, the largest independent, Hispanic-owned and operated, full-service agency specializing in Hispanic marketing. FerO, as he’s affectionately known at work, was born in Mexico City, where he studied graphic design and advertising at the Universidad Anahuac Mexico Norte. After receiving a Master’s Degree, he launched his career as a graphic designer at Ammirati Puris Lintas and became Art Director two years later. FerO’s career and creative talents spanned several agencies including DDB Mexico, Lowe + Partners Worldwide, and TBWA, where he lead teams as director and vice president of creative. In 2010, he left Mexico City to join Lopez Negrete in Houston. FerO has worked on major brands such as Coca-Cola, Apple, Compaq, Burger King, Absolut Vodka, Renault, Adidas, MetLife, HSBC, Volkswagen, Axe, Pennzoil, Sol Beer and Walmart. He’s also taught graphic design and advertising, and his work has garnered hundreds of awards in the U.S. and internationally, such as FIAP, El Ojo, New York Festivals and Cannes.

Where were you born or grew up, where do you live, does this affect your design style or sensibility?
I was born and raised in Mexico City surrounded by mountains, traffic and all kinds of cultural and social expressions. Mexico City is a mix of colors, design, traditions and emotions that affect you every day on your way to work. Now that I’m living in Houston, everything is new and different. I think that gives you, as a designer, the opportunity to refresh and apply all that knowledge to a new canvas. At the end, we reinvent ourselves all the time without forgetting where we came from.

If you were not a designer, what would you be doing for a living?
I’d be cooking in a little noisy restaurant. It’s a dream I have and one day I will be doing it.

What is your greatest strength and weakness as a designer or design manager?
I know how to push people to come up with better ideas. I’m never satisfied with my work.